Wednesday, February 13, 2008

This cartoon raises an extremely interesting point. Will Barack Obama draw special attention to Africa if he becomes president or will white people view that as drawing attention to "black issues?" Inner cities like Detroit, Newark, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Memphis are struggling economically, politically, and socially. These cities are crying out for national attention. Will they be able to get the attention without Obama being accused of playing favorites?

Think of the multiple issues that will be begging for attention from the new president, the war in Iraq, the economy, education, and crime. All these issues are currently slamming the black community. If Barack Obama is our president, will black people be able to complain and protest governmental policies with the same passion and power?

I think that black people will be able to protest and demand that our issues be heard, but will these protests fall on deaf ears. Obama has spouted all kind of rhetoric about hope and bringing people together. I think that by doing this he has put himself and us in a precarious position. Now he can't really address some of the issues that affect black people without being accused by whites of catering to black people. It's going to be interesting to see how he will handle such a situation.

Yes, I think many of the issues pressing to Africans and African Americans will be addressed.

Yes, I think they will likely not be addressed to many black folks' liking.

Yes, people will point to Obama as an example that racism is dead and equality has been achieved. Yes, those people will be wrong, wrong, WRONG. Our best message against this thinking, and I hope it is one that Barack Obama will voice, is that his presidency represents tremendous advancement for black people, but is far from the endgame.

I believe that Black people will protest, I think many will protest as if it were a white person in office when the need arises. Barak is running for the Office of the President of the United States, the person holding the office is the symbolic figure head for the purposes of THAT office first and foremost. He is campaigning now, and what he SAYS now will more than likely NOT be accomplished to the degree many believe those things should be. Obama, like many that have been elected to office have not (will not) fulfilled their "wish list." For instance, Sonny Perdue Governor of Georgia, won his first term by promising backwoods white folk he would change the flag back to carrying the "stars and bars", once elected, even to his second term he did nothing about he flag. George Bush ran on the premise of privatizing Social Security, once elected he has done nothing to privatize Social Security. The same with Obama. He is already telling everyone he is not running to be president of Black America, white America, Red or Blue America, but Ameriica. Thus, he will not pay attention to Memphis, Detroit, New Orleans, Philly or South Central, LA because he has warned us already. Africa will still be indebted to the IMF, Jamaica, Trinidad as well will not benefit from Obama being president, he will keep them beholden to the IMF and the intenational banking groups because simply this is part of the job of the Office of the President of the United States.

Daedalus Said: The United States spends billions every year on blacks and it does no good. All Obama has done really, is confirm the fact that blacks can acheive anything they desire to with education. Socialism doesnt work. One only needs to look at New Orleans to understand this. If blacks really want to protest something, how bout protesting the people who look like us who are robbing and killing them. How bout protesting the children who dont want an education. How bout protesting socialist policies that have reduced black people to a dependent class and destroyed our families... Naaah... As my mother would say: Its too much like doing right.

The idea that Obama is running for the president of the United States and not just black people is not a "warning" as someone above posted. It is the truth. It doesn't mean that black people won't get their particular issues addressed. It means that "black" issues cannot be exclusively addressed. I think there is a danger to thinking a black man in the White House is going to solve all of our problems, even the ones with roots at the local level. There is scarcely an issue on Obama's or Clinton's platform that does not in some way affect black people.